Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Earl Howe on 17 July (WA 145), which supermarkets have signed up to the calorie reduction pledge; what action each has taken to demonstrate its commitment to the pledge; who is responsible for monitoring the behaviour of supermarkets with reference to the pledge; and whether any sanction exists for failure to adhere to the pledge.

Eight supermarket chains have committed to take voluntary action to support and enable their customers to eat and drink fewer calories. A table giving each supermarket chain’s calorie reduction pledge annual returns for 2013 and 2014 has been placed in the Library.

Annual returns provided by companies are published on the Responsibility Deal website each summer. An independent evaluation of the whole Responsibility Deal is under way. The Department does not monitor the returns against delivery plans. If a company fails to provide an annual return it may be removed as a signatory to that pledge.